Conveying chain pair for gripper carriages on sheet-fed machines, particularly offset printing presses

ABSTRACT

A conveyor chain in the form of a roller chain guided between spaced longitudinal guide members presenting flat land surfaces lying in a vertical plane at the edge of the chain. Certain ones of the pins of the roller chain, in a repetitive pattern, are extended outwardly of the land surfaces. Mounted upon the pins are a series of flatly overlapping cover plates which ride against the land surfaces and seal the guideway against entry of contaminants or escape of lubricant. In the preferred embodiment the cover plates are of oval construction with the rounded end portions thereof having cooperating circular recesses to permit flat seating as well as relative articulation of the cover plates when the chain is directed along a curved path.

United States Patent 1191 Preuss Apr. 22, 1975 CONVEYING CHAIN PAIR FORGRlPPER 2.150.610 3/1939 Raffetto l98/l8l CARRIAGES ON SHEET FEDMACHINES, 3.094.206 6/1963 Stewart et al.. 198/181 X PARTICULARLY OFFSETPRINTING 3.389.662 6/1968 Jacoby 198/129 X PRESSES Primary Evuminer-EvonC. Blunk [75] In entor: ed c Preuss, prendlingen. AssistantExaminer-Douglas D. Watts Germany Arlornqn Agent, or Firm-Wolfe,Hubbard. Leydig, [73] Assignee: Roland Offsetmaschinenfabrik Volt & am"

Faber & Schleicher AG [22] Filed: Sept. 17, 1973 [57] ABSTRACT Aconveyor chain in the form of a roller chain guided [21] PP N03 3971790between spaced longitudinal guide members presenting flat land surfaceslying in a vertical plane at the [30] Foreign Application priority Datafdge the chain. Certain ones of the pins 031L116 rol- 2 I 224 er c am,1n a repet1t1ve pattern, are exten e outscpt Gummy 6061 wardly of theland surfaces. Mounted upon the pins [52] U S Cl 74/250 0 74/251198/1419 are a series of flatly overlapping cover plates which [51] IIIt Cl IIIIIIIIIIII Fl6g 13/02 ride against the land surfaces and seal theguideway [58] Fie'ld R 250 R against entry of contaminants or escape oflubricant. 74/250 C 'i"' 77R ln the preferred embodiment the coverplates are of oval construction with the rounded end portions thereofhaving cooperating circular recesses to permit flat seating as well asrelative articulation of the cover [56] g g zg g gii plates when thechain is directed along a curved path. 1.665.100 4/l928 Klauckc 74 245 R7 Claims 3 Drawing Figures r I 3 ll [[J 3 I. O .i

I 2 I I5 PATENTEDAPRZZISTS sumzqgg m F u I. a u

CONVEYING CHAIN PAIR FOR GRIPPER CARRIAGES ON SHEET-FED MACHINES;PARTICULARLY OFFSET PRINTING PRESSES In a conveyor chain constructionfor a sheet fed printing press. conveyor chains are provided as alaterally spaced pair with gripper mechanisms carried bridgingly betweenthem. The chains are guided in trackways which must be lubricated.Because the abrasive dust. paper particles and the powder used toprevent offsetting the printed impressions from one sheet to another.the surfaces quickly become coated with a gummy accumulation which isdifficult to remove and which tends to destroy the effect of thelubricant and thus shorten the life of the chains and trackways. Moreover. the lubricant from the chains often is thrown upon the sheetsbeing transported requiring that the soiled sheets be discarded.

It is. accordingly. an object of the present invention to provide aconveyor chain construction which has novel sealing means for operationin a contaminated environment such as that to be found about conveyingand delivery mechanism of a printing press. It is a general object toprovide a conveyor chain construction in which the chain and itsguideways are sealed against entry of foreign matter and sealed againstescape of lubricant so that the moving parts are protected against theeffect of abrasive materials and the lubricant is kept clean and fullyeffective. It is a related object to provide a conveyor chainconstruction which is both simple and effective but which reducesmaintenance to a minimum. avoiding necessity for frequent cleaning orlubrication and permitting operation at high speed and efficiency over along period of time. It is. moreover. an object of the invention. whenthe device is used in a printing press, to prevent the sheets which arebeing transported from being spotted and soiled by escaping lubricant.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a conveyorchain of the roller type which is guided in a track or guideway and inwhich the guideway is en closed by cover plates which are secured to theside of the chain in overlapping. flatly interfitted relation. with eachplate in the series being circularly recessed for permitting articulatedmovement of adjacent plates as the chain is guided in a curved path.

It is finally an object of the present invention to provide a sealingarrangement for a conveyor chain which is simple and inexpensive. whichmay be added at minimum cost to existing designs of conveyors and whichmay be employed as a conversion feature in conveyors already in thefield.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent uponreading the attached detailed description and upon reference to thedrawings in which:

FIG. I is a plan view of a section of conveyor chain looking along line1-1 in FIG. 2, with portions in partial section.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view looking along line 22 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a vertical section taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

While the invention has been described in connection with a preferredembodiment. it will be understood that I do not intend to be limited tothe particular embodiment shown but intend, on the contrary, to coverthevarious alternative and equivalent constructions included within thespirit and scope of the appended claims.

Turning now to the drawings there is shown a length of conveyor chain ofthe type usually referred to as roller chain made up of parallel rows offlat links 11, 12 in overlapping relation. pinned together by pins 13,certain of the pins, 14. being extended laterally away from the chainfor a purpose which will shortly appear. lnterposed between the rows oflinks are rollers or spacers 15. The rollers may have an internallytelescoped hardened liner as indicated in cross section at 16.

It will be understood that two such conveyor chains 10 are mountedhorizontally in parallel relation for the purpose of supporting spacedgripper carriages as indicated at 18 (FIGS. 1 and 3). It will beunderstood. however. that the gripper carriages do not per se form apart of the present invention so that there is no need to describe thegripper carriage construction. and reference. for this purpose. may behad to the prior art and published literature.

For the purpose of guiding the chain I0 along a path of movement. aguide assembly 20 is provided which. as shown in FIG. 3, is preferablyin the form of a channel 21 of inverted U-shaped construction securedalong one of its walls. by means not shown. to supporting framestructure 22. The member 21 has a downwardly presented edge 23.Supported in opposed. edgewise position is a cooperating guide member 24having an upwardly facing edge 25. The edges are spaced parallel to oneanother to form a track or guideway, and are of such width as to matewith. and support. the rollers 15 of the conveyor chain. It will beunderstood that while the track defined by the edges 23, 25 may have along. straight run portion. the chain 10 is endless and the track isaccordingly curved or looped at its ends (not shown).

In accordance with the present invention. land surfaces are providedstraddling the chain and lying in a vertical plane which extends alongthe lateral edge of the chain. Carried on the pins of the chain. andalong one side of the chain. are overlapping coverplates which rideflatly against the land surfaces and which are cooperatingly recessed inthe region of overlap to provide a continuous sealing surface and topermit relative movement. or articulation. as the chain departs from astraight line path. Referring to the drawings. a typical cover plate isshown at 30, formed of a flat layer of metal or plastic. of ovalcontour. and having pin openings 31, 32 centered within its rounded ends33. 34. In order to nest together the overlapping portions of adjacentcover plates. the cover plate has a shallow recess 35 of circularprofile at one end and a similar shallow circular recess 36 at theopposite end, the two recesses being oppositely faced. The platepresents a flat inwardly facing surface 37.

Turning attention to the adjacent cover plate 40, which may be of thesame or different length. it will be seen that this plate has spacedopenings 41, 42 for mounting purposes with rounded ends 43, 44 formedwith shallow circular recesses 45, 46 and having a flat inwardly facingsurface 47.

For the purpose of sealingly engaging the inwardly facing surfaces 37,47 on the plates. flat land surfaces 51, 52 are provided extending alongthe edge of the chain in straddling relation. Such surfaces are formedon members 53. 54 which may be secured by welding or the like to therespective guide members 21. 24. The land surfaces 51. 52 are alinedwith one another in the same plane. a plane which is slightly offsetfrom the chain body as shown in FIG. 3. Because the recessing of theadjacent cover plates. the cover plates cooperate to provide acontinuous sealing engagement with the land surfaces. Means arepreferably provided for causing the cover plates to bear resilientlyagainst the land surfaces; for example. a coil spring 55 may be used(FIG. 1) seating against a bushing 56 which is tele scoped into thealined plate openings.

Since the conveyor chain is endless. turn-arounds must be provided. andfor this purpose the track surfaces 23. 25 which bear against the chainrollers may be mutually curved so that the chain links and cover platesundergo articulating movement. Because of the fact that the ends of thecover plates and the cooperating recesses in which such ends are fittedare ofcircular profile. a substantially continuous seal is provided. yetthe adjacent plates are free to swing with respect to one another. Atleast one of the openings 31., 32 or 41. 42 in each of the cover platesis made oversized so as to accommodate the relative shifting of theplate mounting centers which occurs as the chain'is drawn around acurve.

As a result of the continuous -face engagement between the cover platesand the land surfaces which they engage. the guideways surrounding thechain. along its right-hand side as viewed in FIGS. 1 and 3, is sealedagainst entry offoreign matter and against loss oflubricant normallyprovided at the track surfaces. ln the case of a conveyor chain fortransporting of gripper carriages in a sheet fed printing pressinstallation. the air is constantly contaminated with paper. dust andabrasive particles as well as the anti-offset powder which is applied tothe freshly printed surfaces of the sheet such substances forming agummy accumulation which is difficult to remove and which so affectslubrication that the chains and guideway wear prematurely. It will beapparent that with use of present design seal. contaminants are kept outand lubricant is kept in. with no possibility of soiling the transportedsheets.

The discussion has been directed to the seal which exists at the inneror right-hand edge of the chain 10. lt will be understood that theleft-hand edge of the chain may be protected by the simple expedient ofbridging the opening at the lower edge of the inverted channel. Whilethe invention has been found to be particularly well suited to use inconveyors for sheet fed presses. it will be understood that theinvention is not limited thereto and may be employed wherever it isdesired to shield and protect a conveyor chain of the roller type.

What I claim is:

1. In a conveyor chain construction for use in a contaminatedenvironment. the combination comprising a roller chain having parallelrows of flat links and having 5 pins for pinning the links inoverlapping relation with rollers interposed between them. the rollersbeing of lesser dimension so as to define a longitudinally extendinggroove on each side of the chain. parallel guide members enclosing thechain and extending longitudinally of the chain on both sides thereof,the guide members presenting edges registering with the grooves andengaging the rollers to provide a lubricated guideway for the chain, theguide members having flat closely spaced land surfaces straddling thechain and lying in a plane close to the chain which extendsperpendicularly to the roller axes along one side of the chain. certainof the pins in a regularly recurring pattern being extended axiallybeyond the land surfaces. and a series of covering plates secured to theextended pins. each covering plate having a pair of holes engaged by anadjacent pair of pins. the covering plates being in longitudinallyoverlapping relation and sufficiently wide as to bear upon both of theland surfaces so as to seal the chain and lubricated guideway againstentry of foreign matter and against escape of the lubricant.

2. The combination as claimed in claim 1 in which the mutuallyoverlapping portions of the covering plates are cooperatingly recessedso that the covering plates provide substantially continuous anduninterrupted contact with the land surfaces.

3. The combination as claimed in claim 2 in which the recessed portionsare of mating circular profile to permit articulation of the coveringplates as the chain departs from a straight path.

4. The combination as claimed in claim 1 in which the covering platesare of oval profile and sufficiently long so as to span a multiple ofthe pin-to-pin distance on the chain.

gripper structure is secured to the extended pins in a 5. Thecombination as claimed in claim 1 in which

1. In a conveyor chain construction for use in a contaminatedenvironment, the combination comprising a roller chain having parallelrows of flat links and having pins for pinning the links in overlappingrelation with rollers interposed between them, the rollers being oflesser dimension so as to define a longitudinally extending groove oneach side of the chain, parallel guide members enclosing the chain andextending longitudinally of the chain on both sides thereof, the guidemembers presenting edges registering with the grooves and engaging therollers to provide a lubricated guideway for the chain, the guidemembers having flat closely spaced land surfaces straddling the chainand lying in a plane close to the chain which extends perpendicularly tothe roller axes along one side of the chain, certain of the pins in aregularly recurring pattern being extended axially beyond the landsurfaces, and a series of covering plates secured to the extended pins,each covering plate having a pair of holes engaged by an adjacent pairof pins, the covering plates being in longitudinally overlappingrelation and sufficiently wide as to bear upon both of the land surfacesso as to seal the chain and lubricated guideway against entry of foreignmatter and against escape of the lubricant.
 1. In a conveyor chainconstruction for use in a contaminated environment, the combinationcomprising a roller chain having parallel rows of flat links and havingpins for pinning the links in overlapping relation with rollersinterposed between them, the rollers being of lesser dimension so as todefine a longitudinally extending groove on each side of the chain,parallel guide members enclosing the chain and extending longitudinallyof the chain on both sides thereof, the guide members presenting edgesregistering with the grooves and engaging the rollers to provide alubricated guideway for the chain, the guide members having flat closelyspaced land surfaces straddling the chain and lying in a plane close tothe chain which extends perpendicularly to the roller axes along oneside of the chain, certain of the pins in a regularly recurring patternbeing extended axially beyond the land surfaces, and a series ofcovering plates secured to the extended pins, each covering plate havinga pair of holes engaged by an adjacent pair of pins, the covering platesbeing in longitudinally overlapping relation and sufficiently wide as tobear upon both of the land surfaces so as to seal the chain andlubricated guideway against entry of foreign matter and against escapeof the lubricant.
 2. The combination as claimed in claim 1 in which themutually overlapping portions of the covering plates are cooperatinglyrecessed so that the covering plates provide substantially continuousand uninterrupted contact with the land surfaces.
 3. The combination asclaimed in claim 2 in which the recessed portions are of mating circularprofile to permit articulation of the covering plates as the chaindeparts from a straight path.
 4. The combination as claimed in claim 1in which the covering plates are of oval profile and sufficiently longso as to span a multiple of the pin-to-pin distance on the chain.
 5. Thecombination as claimed in claim 1 in which gripper structure is securedto the extended pins in a position outwardly of the cover plates.
 6. Thecombination as claimed in claim 1 in which biasing means are interposedbetween the pins and the covering plates for biasing the covering platestoward the land surfaces.